On October 17, representatives of more than 30 social organizations, many members of the LGBT (Lesbian – Gay – Bisexual and Transgender) community and their allies attended a seminar in Hanoi to release three documents which have been sent to the National Assembly deputies for the approval of same-sex marriage.

The event was held by ICS Center, the organization promoting and protecting LGBT rights in Vietnam, together with other 7 organizations and groups of Vietnamese LGBT, PFLAG (Parents and Friends of Lesbian And Gay) and CSOs (civil society organizations), ahead of the upcoming 13th National Assembly’s 6th session which will discuss the adjustment of a number of articles in the 2000 Law on Marriage and Family.

The documents include a letter of social organizations, a letter of the Parents, Families, & Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) Vietnam and a petition gathering more than 8,300 signatures of people who support same-sex marriage. They have been sent to 500 deputies of the National Assembly for the discussion expected to take place on November 5.

Nguyen Thanh Thuy, a member of PFLAG, expressed her sadness seeing the law doesn’t recognize the right to marriage of her son, a gay man.

“I myself denied the fact that my son is homosexual but I can accept the truth now,” she shared. “What if I tell him that I don’t prohibit him from getting same-sex marriage, but I do not accept it? Am I offending him? If the law sees that same-sex marriage shouldn’t be banned, the law needs to recognize it.”

Besides sending the documents, a campaign titled “Tôi Đồng Ý” (I Do) has also been launched among social networks where participants put their photos featuring them posing with the slogan “I Do,” showing their support to same-sex marriage. Besides, another program named “5,000 letters to National Assembly deputies” was also kicked off.

Nguyen Hai Yen, a representative of the LGBT community expressed her wish that same-sex marriage will be legalized after the National Assembly’s session.

“Marriage, to many homosexuals, is a simple but burning dream,” she said. “We do not need any privilege, we just want to be like other people, to find someone to love and want that love to be understood by everybody.”